Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 30, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Thursday, July 30, 2009 Techstars brings The Lean Startup to Boulder Im very excited to announce a pair of events that will kick off a very busy fall speaking tour. The event will include a talk from Eric on The Lean Startup over dinner, followed by moderated table discussion and then final Q&A with Eric.

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Lean San Francisco Continuous Deployment DC 68

Startup Lessons Learned

AUGUST 8, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Saturday, August 8, 2009 Revisiting the Software Design Manifesto (and whats changed since then) My recent article on technical debt and its positive uses generated a fair bit of controversy. The same might be said of good software. Here we have the beginnings of a theory of design for software.

Software Review 87

Software Review Design Software San Francisco 87

Startup Lessons Learned

AUGUST 26, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Wednesday, August 26, 2009 Building a new startup hub Last week, I had a unique opportunity to spend some time in Boulder at the behest of TechStars. It was a great experience to see a relatively new startup hub in action - and thriving. Their model looks like a key ingredient in the startup brew there.

San Francisco 113

San Francisco Silicon Valley Startup Lean 113

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 30, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Tuesday, September 30, 2008 What does a startup CTO actually do? But I dont think most startups really have a need for someone to do that on a full time basis. It became harder and harder to separate how the software is built from how the software is structured. Massive proprietary databases?

CTO 168

CTO Fractional CTO CTO Hire Technical Review 168

Agile VC

SEPTEMBER 16, 2014

He was wrapping up GrabCAD’s participation in the Seedcamp accelerator program, and the Seedcamp startups were in the US to visit potential advisors and investors in Boston, New York, and SF. I first met Hardi at the beginning of 2011 here in Cambridge. Congrats again not only to Hardi but to the entire GrabCAD team.

Boston 154

Boston Acquisition Estonia Viral 154

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 2, 2008

We wanted an agile approach that would allow us to build our software architecture as we needed it, without downtime, but also without large amounts of up-front cost. After all, the worst kind of waste in software development is code to support a use case that never materializes. Expo SF (May. . Expo SF (May.

San Francisco 94

San Francisco Continuous Deployment Agile Lean 94

Agile VC

SEPTEMBER 15, 2011

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. Startup IPO Market: A Fickle Mistress. In the software an internet space a number of companies obviously had strong public offerings (LinkedIn, Yandex, Pandora, RenRen, et al). What will happen for the startup IPO market? How To Think About The Future. September 15, 2011.

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Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 7, 2008

In addition to presenting the IMVU case, we tried for the first time to do an overview of a software engineering methodology that integrates practices from agile software development with Steves method of Customer Development. Can this methodology be used for startups that are not exclusively about software?

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Customer Development Engineer San Francisco Developer 131

Startup Lessons Learned

FEBRUARY 9, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, February 9, 2009 The lean startup @ Web 2.0 Expo to explain the lean startup concept to a larger audience. The Lean Startup: a Disciplined Approach to Imagining, Designing, and Building New Products.: It uses principles of agile software development, open source and web 2.0,

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Lean San Francisco Web Advisory Board 68

Agile VC

JUNE 5, 2012

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. Apple and Facebook are both platforms , in the sense that their software and user networks are utilized by countless software developers to build their own businesses. At the end of the day, Apple isn’t really a software platform company. How To Think About The Future.

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Java Flash Software Azure 170

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 17, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Tuesday, March 17, 2009 Join the Lean Startup discussion at Web 2.0 Expo for free Im honored to announce that my Lean Startup session at the Web 2.0 Everyone else can register to come to both sessions for free, including the Lean Startup talk in the main conference. What does this mean for you?

Lean 76

Lean San Francisco Web Continuous Deployment 76

Startup Lessons Learned

FEBRUARY 20, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Friday, February 20, 2009 Work in small batches Software should be designed, written, and deployed in small batches. For software, the easiest batch to see is code. When something goes wrong with production software, its almost always because of an unintended side-effect of some piece of code.

San Francisco 161

San Francisco Software Review Continuous Deployment Development Team Review 161

Altgate

SEPTEMBER 16, 2010

The presentation was on outsourcing generally, not just software engineering and the audience was very early stage companies (some yet to be founded). We tried to provide a framework for startups to think about what activities should be outsourced and why. What kind of startup outsources everything? Engineering/QA.

Software Review 65

Software Review Offshore Startup Boston 65

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 4, 2008

(Maybe youd like to start with The lean startup , How to listen to customers , or What does a startup CTO actually do? ) He serves on the advisory board of a number of technology startups, and has worked as a consultant to a number of startups, companies, and venture capital firms.

San Francisco 155

San Francisco Technical Cofounder Fractional CTO CTO 155

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 20, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, October 20, 2008 The engineering managers lament I was inspired to write The product managers lament while meeting with a startup struggling to figure out what had gone wrong with their product development process. They just assumed it was the way software companies worked. Sound good?

Software Review 164

Software Review Engineer Management Technical Review 164

Startup Lessons Learned

MAY 27, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Wednesday, May 27, 2009 Austin: the Lean Startup tour continues Next week I head to Austin, TX for my first visit ever. The Lean Startup is a practical approach for creating and managing a new breed of company that excels in low-cost experimentation, rapid iteration, and true customer insight.

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Lean Austin San Francisco Continuous Deployment 60

Startup Lessons Learned

JUNE 15, 2009

Of all the tactics I have advocated as part of the lean startup , none has provoked as many extreme reactions as continuous deployment , a process that allows companies to release software in minutes instead of days, weeks, or months. All customers will see the new software as soon as it’s deployed.

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Continuous Deployment Software Review San Francisco Lean 167

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 10, 2008

I am convinced one of Joel Spolskys lasting contributions to the field of managing software teams will turn out to be the Joel Test , a checklist of 12 essential practices that you could use to rate the effectiveness of a software product development team. Please leave feedback!) Joels Painless Bug Tracking is still the gold standard.

Software Review 144

Software Review Technical Review San Francisco Continuous Deployment 144

Startup Lessons Learned

MAY 31, 2010

Expo Intensive rocked, the mainstream media has started writing about the Lean Startup, and - most of all - the movement continues to grow and evolve. First of all, the Startup Lessons Learned conference exceeded my wildest expectations. He inspired me to take a deeper look at what we all thought we understood about startups.

San Francisco 133

San Francisco Lean Technical Review Software Review 133

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 5, 2008

But I have a special sympathy for the "product manager" in a startup that is bringing a new product to a new market, and doing their work in large batches. So the product manager winds up actually having to use the software, by hand, updating the spec and helping create a new test plan. October 6, 2008 12:17 AM r& said.

San Francisco 158

San Francisco Management Software Review Product 158

Agile VC

DECEMBER 13, 2011

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. I often tell these entrepreneurs that I genuinely hope they prove us wrong, and are wildly successful with their startup. I looked at this founder’s prior startup, which ultimately had a successful exit, and then was happy to connect with him again as he launches a new project.

Seed Stage 185

Seed Stage Silicon Valley Cofounder Technical Review 185

Agile VC

JANUARY 4, 2012

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. Founders Hardi Meybaum and Indrek Narusk originally started building the company in their native Estonia before moving to Boston to join the hub of SaaS / CAD software companies located here. I co-founded NextView Ventures , a seed-stage VC firm based in Boston, in 2010.

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Community Estonia Syndicate Syndication 100

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 2, 2008

Its inspired by the classic OODA Loop and is really just a simplified version of that concept, applied specifically to creating a software product development team. Were a software company, so what we do everyday is turn ideas into code. Labels: agile , listening to customers 3comments: hauteroute said. Great points Eric.

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San Francisco Continuous Deployment Lean DC 142

Startup Lessons Learned

MAY 14, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Thursday, May 14, 2009 The Lean Startup Workshop - now an OReilly Master Class My rate of posting has been much lower lately, and this is mostly due to preparations for the upcoming Lean Startup Workshop on May 29. I joined a financial services tech startup in 1999. You can click here to learn more.

Lean 60

Lean San Francisco Continuous Deployment Software Review 60

Startup Lessons Learned

NOVEMBER 8, 2008

For software, we have many - you can enjoy a nice long list on Wikipedia. This theory has become so influential that I have called it one of the three pillars of the lean startup - every bit as important as the changes in technology or the advent of agile development. Very few startups fail for lack of technology.

Customer Development 168

Customer Development Developer San Francisco Customer 168

Startup Lessons Learned

JANUARY 18, 2010

This case presents a further complication: desktop software. Without being able transparently modify the software in situ, is it still possible to deploy on a continuous basis? Ash Maurya is the founder of WiredReach , a bootstrapped startup that he has been running for seven years. Read on to find out.

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Continuous Deployment San Francisco Lean Wiki 151

Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 5, 2010

I have personally sold many copies of his book, and continue to recommend it as one of the most important books a startup founder can read. While the customer development framework of Four Steps is universally relevant, The Entrepreneur’s Guide updates its practices for modern startups.

Customer Development 166

Customer Development Developer San Francisco Customer 166

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 1, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, September 1, 2008 Test-Driven Development as andon cord You cannot control what you cannot see, and the hardest part of managing software projects is that the final product is so intangible. In almost all Agile Development systems, thousands of automated tests are run against every change to the software.

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San Francisco Developer Continuous Deployment DC 68

Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 29, 2009

I hope to show why lean and agile techniques actually reduce the negative impacts of technical debt and increase our ability to take advantage of its positive effects. Startups especially can benefit by using technical debt to experiment, invest in process, and increase their product development leverage.

Technical Review 168

Technical Review Software Review San Francisco Lean 168

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 2, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Tuesday, September 2, 2008 On deployment My favorite question to ask a software development team is "how do you do a release." How long does the software sit un-deployed? Software is generally always getting better or getting worse. No departments The Five Whys for Startups (for Harvard Business R.

San Francisco 60

San Francisco Continuous Deployment Lean DC 60

Agile VC

APRIL 17, 2011

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. Kayak was started here in my backyard of Boston… co-founder & CTO Paul English and the product/engineering team is based here in Concord MA. Kayak Software Corporation. I co-founded NextView Ventures , a seed-stage VC firm based in Boston, in 2010. April 17, 2011.

Pre-Money Valuation 113

Pre-Money Valuation Liquidation Preference Dividend Common Stock 113

Startup Lessons Learned

APRIL 14, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Tuesday, April 14, 2009 Validated learning about customers Would you rather have $30,000 or $1 million in revenues for your startup? In an early-stage startup especially, revenue is not an important goal in and of itself. Let’s start with a simple question: why do early-stage startups want revenue?

Customer 167

Customer San Francisco Lean Hockey Stick 167

Startup Lessons Learned

DECEMBER 28, 2009

Or, phrased more hopefully, "I see how you can use continuous deployment to run an online consumer service, but how can it be used for B2B software?" That continuous deployment leads to lower quality software than software built in large batches. In a successful startup, the development team is also growing.

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Continuous Deployment San Francisco Lean Metrics 122

Startup Lessons Learned

APRIL 26, 2009

Its a force that allows startups to build products at parity with much larger companies - cheaper and much faster. Its a key lean startup concept. We combined three tactics: extensive use of free software, an open platform for user-generated content, and leveraged distribution channels.

Product Development 88

Product Development Developer San Francisco Product 88

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 8, 2008

I was building a new startup in 1999, and wanted to do it right. It felt like software that grownups were supposed to use, and we didnt qualify. That startup didnt turn out so well, but not for lack of technology. Now you can build an app at true web scale without incurring any software costs, or any fixed hardware costs.

San Francisco 68

San Francisco Technology Continuous Deployment Lean 68

Startup Lessons Learned

JANUARY 2, 2009

For the rest of us, there is an alternative: to create credibility by building a lean startup. Rather than just focus on the right kind of pitch to use, I wanted to write about the kinds of startups that create lasting value, and therefore are great companies to fund even in down times. Retention cohort analysis. Is there s choice?

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San Francisco Tampa Continuous Deployment Lean 60

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 10, 2008

His post is ostensibly about how often to release new work (whether youre a blog writer, movie star, software team.) I see startups struggle with this all the time. Update : bonus thought from Dharmesh Shahs 8 Startup Insights Inspired By The Mega Mind of Seth Godin: 6. I’ve been in the software industry for a long time.

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San Francisco Continuous Deployment Lean DC 76